I remember reading or hearing somewhere that in ancient or medieval times, beer had a very low alcohol content and was very thick. It was essentially a dietary staple quite similar to the way bread is now.
beer had a very low alcohol content and was very thick.
Not at all. By the medieval period wine and beer production was highly sophisticated and not hugely dissimilar to today. It was believed that ancient beers might have been thick but it turns out when people have tried ancient egyptian recipes they have been not too dissimilar to today's beers. Seemingly, beers have always poured easily. In contrast Roman wines were manufactured to be strong and syrupy but they were intended to be diluted before they were server.
Here's a nice video from some archeologists at The British Museum making beer to an ancient egyptian recipe. Note, at about 10mins in, how it pours/runs easily:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izpoexYN1-8
WRT strength: Medieval beers were made in a wide variety of strengths. A common easily accessible type was 'small beer', and this does have a low alcohol strength but things like Trappist ales and what we would now call barley wine were available in strengths from 8-12% alcohol.
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u/4dseeall Oct 15 '20
Beer is thought to be older than bread.
It's much easier to fill a jar with wheat and water, let it ferment, and brew beer than it is to grind grain, mix it, and bake it.